Arioso7's Blog (Shirley Kirsten)

A Phrase loving exchange between Teacher and Student (Mozart Sonata in C, K. 545)

Tonight’s lesson with Judy had inspiring moments within a phrase sharing interplay. We started out singing the opening measures of the composer’s charming masterpiece, emphasizing a singing line supported by harmonies cresting and dipping into resolutions. The vocal lead-in, threaded through the whole lesson, often rippling into supple wrists, relaxed arms –but it deepened in perspective by an understanding of harmonic rhythm and its influence on phrasing and emotional expression.

Here’s how the lesson unfolded:

Sample of slow practice approach to opening phrases